Allen Whipple. American Knight of surgery (to the 80th anniversary of the first successful one-stage pancreatoduodenal resection)

Abstract. In 1940, having baggage of three fatal two-stage pancreatoduodenal resections, during the demonstration surgery, the famous American surgeon Allen Whipple performs the first successful one-stage pancreatoduodenal resection for pancreatic head cancer. It is immeasurable surprise and respect that such a volume of intervention was not planned, since the patient was diagnosed with a tumor of the antral part of the stomach before the operation. The complexity of the situation didn`t stop Allen Whipple’s plans, and the subsequent success, which gave not only 9 years of life of the operated patient, but also to the whole world the original method of operation, became the starting point of a new era of pancreatic surgery Whipple’s contribution to surgery is not limited to performing one-stage pancreatoduodenal resection. He pioneered the reform of postgraduate medical education in the United States of America, founded the world’s first plastic surgery training program, developed new methods of intra- and perioperative management of patients with colon cancer, criteria for diagnosing insulinoma, which are today called the «Whipple’s triad». The study of the structure of the spleen, as well as its role in the spread of tumor cells, made it possible to determine the indications and contraindications for splenectomy. He also developed and applied porto-caval and splenorenal shunting operations, which reduce pressure in the portal vein system in patients with liver cirrhosis.